Nandini Roy Choudhury, writer
Brief news
- Gary Wang, former FTX technology chief, received three years of supervised release and was ordered to forfeit $11 billion after pleading guilty to multiple fraud charges.
- He cooperated extensively with authorities, aiding in the prosecution of Sam Bankman-Fried.
- Wang expressed remorse in court, pledging to pursue redemption and develop tools to identify fraud in cryptocurrency markets.
Detailed news
Gary Wang, the former technology chief and co-founder of FTX, was sentenced to three years of supervised release and time served for each of the four counts to which he pleaded guilty on Wednesday. He is the fifth and final ex-employee of the collapsed crypto exchange to be punished. Wang was also required to forfeit $11 billion, which is the same amount as the other co-defendants.
For the four criminal counts to which Wang pleaded guilty—conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit commodities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, and wire fraud—he faced a maximum sentence of 50 years. Wang testified in the trial against his former boss, Sam Bankman-Fried.
Wang was seeking the same sentence as Nishad Singh, the former engineering chief of FTX, who successfully avoided prison time when he was sentenced by Judge Lewis Kaplan last month. He cited his virtually immediate cooperation with the government.
Wang expressed his profound apologies to all of the customers and investors in FTX when he was granted the opportunity to address the court.
Wang stated in a brief address to the court, “I chose the easy path, the cowardly path, instead of doing the right thing,” while holding a single printed piece of paper that he never referred to from the podium.
Additionally, he stated, “I will dedicate the remainder of my life to the pursuit of redemption.”
Wang’s parents and his wife, who is expecting their first child, were present in court to provide him with support.
Wang’s attorneys contend that he was not fully informed about the crimes, in contrast to the other cooperating witnesses, and was unaware that FTX’s sister hedge fund, Alameda Research, was receiving customer funds until the conspiracy was already in progress.
Wang was also being pursued by the government for leniency.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicolas Roos characterized Wang as the most cooperative witness with whom he had ever collaborated. He appreciated Wang’s meticulous deconstruction of the intricate code employed by FTX, which enabled the removal of customer funds from the exchange, thereby essentially deciphering half of the case for the government.
In the sentencing submission, prosecutors stated that Wang has “applied his exceptional computer programming abilities to the identification of potential fraud in the stock and cryptocurrency markets” since testifying against the former FTX CEO. Additionally, Wang has developed an interface that the government has begun utilizing to identify potential fraud by publicly traded companies.
Furthermore, “Wang has also been developing a tool for identifying potential illegal activity in cryptocurrency markets. The Government is aware that Wang will complete this tool as part of his ongoing collaboration if he is sentenced to a period of time served.”
Roos also observed that Wang was the first FTX employee to enter the government’s premises, but she was the last to be sentenced as the FTX criminal proceedings approached their conclusion.
Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison and ordered to pay $11 billion in March, the most severe penalty imposed by Judge Kaplan.
Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda and the primary witness in Bankman-Fried’s prosecution, was sentenced to two years in prison for her involvement in the crime. In May, Ryan Salame, another former senior lieutenant of Bankman-Fried, was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison, which exceeded the maximum recommended by prosecutors.
Judge Kaplan has administered sentences to each of the erstwhile executives of FTX. The 78-year-old justice, who is a veteran of the Southern District of New York, has presided over some of the most significant cases to pass through the courthouse at 500 Pearl Street in downtown Manhattan. He is known for his straightforward approach.
“I have never witnessed anything quite as extraordinary as what transpired here,” Kaplan stated regarding Wang’s collaboration. “You are entitled to a significant amount of credit.”
Source : CNBC news
